This application is based upon and claims the benefit of priority from the prior Japanese Patent Applications No. 2000-285637, filed Sep. 20, 2000; and No. 2001-119900, filed Apr. 18, 2001, the entire contents of both of which are incorporated herein by reference.
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an inverted microscope for magnifying and observing a sample placed on a stage by objective lenses arranged directly below the stage.
2. Description of the Related Art
Microscope photographing devices are widely employed for recording applications in research activities of respective fields handling living cells in medical science and physiology, research and testing activities in industrial fields to observe structures of various metallurgical materials, and to detect faults and contents thereof, and the like. Still at present when electronic imaging technologies in digital cameras and the like are spreading, microscope photographing devices, wherein a large film size camera, a 35 mm film camera, or both of them are arranged at the same time, and exposure photographing is carried out onto at least either a large size film or a 35 mm film, are frequently employed in inspection departments and the like of metallurgical materials and the like where photographing is the objective itself.
As one of microscopes using these photographing devices, for examples, in Japanese Patent Application KOKAI Publication No. 63-138314 and Japanese Patent Application KOKOKU Publication No. 57-37848, disclosed are inverted microscopes integrating photographing devices, therein arranged is a configuration that enables exposure photographing onto at least either a large size film or a 35 mm film.
In such inverted microscopes integrating photographing devices (not shown in the above publications), an electromagnetic shutter for releasing is arranged in the front of a position where an image forming light flux is polarized onto a large size film and a 35 mm film, and by opening and closing the above electromagnetic shutter, it is possible to carry out exposure onto the large size film and the 35 mm film.
In recent years, along with the progress of electronic imaging technologies, high precision digital images may be handled easily, and digital cameras are assembled into many optical microscopes. In the case when such a digital camera is assembled into an inverted microscope, the digital camera is arranged through a TV camera photographing lens onto a top port of a trinocular observation tube, or the digital camera is arranged onto a side port through the same TV camera photographing lens.
On the other hand, apart from the applications for recording images by use of several type of a camera, there are applications for observing magnified images of samples by placing an obscure glass (so-called a screen device) at an attached position of a large size film camera.
In this case, an observer removes a large size film camera first, and attaches a screen device (not illustrated) provided with an obscure glass in the place.
In the practical observation of a sample image by the screen device, since the attachment position is originally the attachment position of a large size film camera, by setting the shutter in manual operation mode and setting it always opened, a sample image may be displayed on the screen. So as to display clearer images, some devices are equipped with also a hood for blocking light from the external at the external circumference of the screen.
Recently, there is a demand in markets for replacing the observation work by looking into eyepieces with the observation work by use of monitor devices such as LCD or the like.
The observation work through eyepieces, wherein an observer must keep a same rigid posture for long hours, will cause fatigue on the observer. Since it is impossible for plural observers to carry observation, there are cases where a device to enable eyepiece observation by plural observers, what is called a discussion device, is additionally installed, or a special TV camera and a monitor are arranged solely for observation by plural observers.
However, in photographing magnified images of an observation sample by a TV camera or a digital camera, when photographing is carried out at the side port, it is impossible to photograph a scale and the like to be inserted into the position of a primary image.
Accordingly, in order to avoid this problem, there is a method of arranging a TV camera or a digital camera onto a top port of a trinocular observation tube through a TV camera photographing lens. However, in this case, a TV camera or a digital camera is positioned in the front of an observer, the observer must displace his posture laterally when to confirm a sample directly by visual inspection, which causes fatigue on the observer and is not preferable accordingly.
Further, when photographing is not carried out by a large size film camera or a 35 mm film camera etc., to those observers, since unnecessary functions are provided to a microscope main body, the large size film camera or the 35 mm film camera is not only useless, but also leads to increased costs, which has been a problem in the prior art.
When to carry out observation by use of an external monitor or a monitor to be connected with a personal computer, there are many cases where the magnification of an observation image to be displayed cannot be grasped. Especially in observation and records of metallurgical structures, in many cases, observations is conducted by photographing of a large size film or a 35 mm film or screen, so the point that the magnification of an observed image cannot be grasped directly at field has been a problem in many cases.
In a microscope in which a photographing device is incorporated as described in Japanese Patent Application KOKAI Publication No. 63-138314, since an electromagnetic shutter is not arranged just before a large size film surface of a large size film camera portion, or just before a 35 mm film surface of a 35 mm film camera, and the space of the large size film camera portion and the space of the 35 mm film camera are connected with the space of a photographing device portion, it is required to take countermeasures against stray light so that unnecessary stray light in the inside of photographing device should not reach to each film surface.
A large size film camera normally has a light blocking plate that is manually operated just before a large size film surface, and before a microscope operator photographing to a large size film, this light blocking plate is retreated manually from light path, and after completion of photographing, the light blocking plate is placed back to its original position so that the film should not be exposed to light once again.
However, a 35 mm film camera does not have this light blocking plate, and when a 35 mm film camera is attached to a photographing device, a shutter in the 35 mm film camera is opened automatically, or a 35 mm film camera initially is not equipped with a shutter, therefore, it is necessary to conduct countermeasures against light leakage especially to a 35 mm film.
On the other hand, the above Japanese Patent Application KOKAI Publication No. 63-138314 (or Japanese Patent Application KOKOKU Publication No. 57-37848) does not describe the contents on the above technology, therefore its details are not clear.
In practical applications, in the microscope having incorporated a photographing device therein as mentioned above, a light path switching mechanism is devised so as to lead an image forming light flux to a large size film surface and a 35 mm film surface, and a switching stroke of a light path switching block is made large, or a 35 mm film camera and the light path switching mechanism are separately blocked with a cylindrical light blocking member so that image forming light flux should not be guided to both the large size film surface and the 35 mm film surface.
Further, it is experimentally verified whether these countermeasures can actually and completely prevent light from leaking or not, and in the case where blocking light is incomplete, various parts to block light are employed in the inside space of a photographing device, which requires a large amount of costs and time in most cases, which has been a problem seen in the prior art.
Further, the above countermeasures against light leakage are effective only when both a large size film camera and a 35 mm film camera are attached to a photographing device in correct manners, therefore, for example, if a large size film camera is removed from a photographing device, there is a fear that a 35 mm film may be exposed to light coming in from the outside, as a consequence, they are not complete countermeasures, which has been another problem with the prior art known well by those skilled in the art.
On the other hand, the above light path switching mechanism for guiding the above image forming light flux to the large size film surface and the 35 mm film surface is normally operated manually, therefore, if its light path switching block is not at a right switching position but at a central position, part of image forming light flux will not be projected correctly onto a film surface, which is called phenomenon of eclipse, and this phenomenon has been still another nonconformity with the prior art.
Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide an inverted microscope that enables efficient combinations of effective image recording devices, and enables to carry out monitor observation and image recording without eyepieces.
Another object of the present invention is to provide an inverted microscope that enables to attach a large size film camera and a camera such as a 35 mm film camera thereto at the same time, and to precisely prevent light leakage to the other camera in the status where one camera is not attached thereto, and to prevent a mistake in photographing owing to light path switching operation.
The inverted microscope according to the present invention is characterized by comprising: an image output port that forms an image of an observation sample to the external surface facing to an observer, at the front side of a microscope main body, below an observation tube to which eyepieces are attached, wherein photographing devices configured that one of at least two kinds of photographing devices is selectively attachable/detachable to the image output port. Further, the inverted microscope according to the present invention is characterized in that the at least two kinds of photographing devices include: a photographing device that exposes and forms the image of the observation sample onto a film surface thereof; a TV camera that photographs the image of the observation sample by a photographing element thereof and outputs image data thereof; and a digital camera device that photographs the image of the observation sample and can record the image data as a still image into a recording medium.
The inverted microscope according to the present invention is characterized comprising: an image forming optical system including objective lenses arranged below an observation sample placed on a stage of a microscope main body; an optical element which forms an image of the observation sample at the position where an image forming light flux obtained by the image forming optical system is polarized to an observer side from the optical axis of the objective lens; photographing means for photographing an image of the observation sample; an image recording section configured to record image signals photographed by the photographing means; and display means attached to the surface facing to the observer at the front of the microscope main body, for displaying images photographed by the photographing means.
Additional objects and advantages of the invention will be set forth in the description which follows, and in part will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice of the invention. The objects and advantages of the invention may be realized and obtained by means of the instrumentalities and combinations particularly pointed out hereinafter.